Special Offer

Editors' Review

There should be no doubt that Apple's decision to block Flash from iOS in favor of HTML5 has spurred Adobe to make sure that its media-rich content-building tool and player Flash remains competitive. Flash Player 11 brings hardware-accelerated graphics support to the platform.

According to Adobe, the new Stage3D technology in the new Flash Player brings combined 2D and 3D acceleration that is up to 1,000 times faster than the previous Flash iterations. While currently Stage3D is supported only for personal computers, it should make its way to mobile devices in future Flash releases. The advancements offered by Stage3D should bring far more complex graphics development for the player, and allow some developers to use it as a viable alternative for their projects, especially for cross-platform efforts.

In addition to accelerated graphics, Flash 11 now is natively in 64-bit code on all supported platforms, which will allow it to better integrate with browsers and plug-ins that are coded in 64-bit. This along with a slew of new enhancements for developers in terms of security improvements, media handling, and better JavaScript integration will enhance the player's use for future development. Flash also comes baked into Google Chrome, and therefore the Chrome OS that powers Google's Chromebooks.

Mac users take note: Flash requires OS X 10.6 or later running on an Intel platform since Adobe removed support for PowerPC Macs in Flash 10.

Although it's possible that HTML5 will at some point unseat Flash as the dominant code for media on the Web, that won't happen for a while yet since HTML5 standards haven't even been finalized. The Flash Player is a must if you want to experience the Web at its fullest, so users at any level of expertise should have no qualms about installing or upgrading.

read more +

Publisher's Description

Flash Player 11 is a lightweight, highly expressive client runtime that delivers powerful and consistent user experiences across major operating systems, browsers, mobile phones, and devices. Adobe Flash Player software is a cross-platform browser plug-in that delivers breakthrough web experiences and is installed on more than 98% of Internet-connected desktops. Adobe Flash Player 11 explores a new architecture for high-performance 2D/3D GPU hardware accelerated graphics rendering by Adobe, which provides low-level Stage3D APIs for advanced rendering in apps and gives framework developers classes of interactive experiences. Flash Player is optimized for high performance on mobile screens and designed to take advantage of native device capabilities, enabling richer and more immersive user experiences.

I have same issue. One thought: file name that downloaded had 32 in it, though it was supposed to be for my 64 bit system. Is this why new Flashplayer doesn't work? Also have Firefox, Windows 7 on my laptop. Had to stop playing Fishville on Facebook due to this. Is there any way to get previous version downloaded? I uninstalled & deleted the old ones, in hopes there was some cross-misuse of files.

It did the same thing around this time last year. Fixed it in September. Looks like they are doing the same thing again.

Summary

I have Win7 64 bit with 16gig of ram & a 50meg line. Also have a 4gig video card. My PC has all the latest updates, And for some reason Adobe Flash has decided to become troublesome. Its a pity as I'm forced to use it in order to watch You-tube & other video sites. And these site require you to have the latest version of Flash, so going back to an older version is not an option.

Its a shameful inept and badly coded software, which is bring a bad name to a otherwise good software company Adobe.

Old versions seemed to work OK as I haven't had a problem until now.Saying that....isnt it the only Flash player around apart from Silverlight?

Cons

New version has very seriously messed up my computer.

Summary

Adobe.....are you out there? Are you reading these messages? Are you even interested?What are you going to do to rectify this?Is it possible to install an older version so i can use You Tube. I dont need any frills....just the means to work.

I'm not looking for all the bells and whistles. I just want a simple player that's stable and works. Adobe Flash Player (AFP) used to be just that but after the last couple of updates, it has begun to crash on a very regular basis. My mother-in-law updated her AFP a couple of days ago and today she asked me what was going on with AFP. I explained that I was having the same problem so came here to find out if others were too and they obviously are. Maybe they will get it worked out soon.

I agree. It is HELL.It is recently become the worst nightmare in the history of the internet.Is there an alternative? Silverlight I'm told but few use it.I like to have a choice of IE8, Firefox and Google Chrome and it seems that there isn't one size fits all. The result is my IE is virtually useless as it is impossible to use as before.

When I open more favorites at once in Internet Explorer 8, Flash player 11 makes my IE8 to crash every once in the about 5 times of opening. I know this because I clicked on "details" when the message "Internet Explorer does not respond" appeared and the fault module is Flash Player.

Summary

I have to do without youtube videos, etc., because Flash Player makes my Internet Explorer 8 to crash when opening favorites on more than one computers. This is only when Flash Player is on my computer.

First thing, there is already something that has replaced Flash. HTML5.Second thing, your computer doesn't crash because of FlashThird thing, Flash crashes because your computer is crap and doesn't have much memory!!!

Seems to work fine for a day or two; maybe it will again in a week or two, but probably needs either a rollback or a new version. Worked even better than before (surprisingly) in Apple's Safari for Windows 5.34, although I haven't rechecked it today.

Cons

Highly frustrating in Windows Vista; 11.3.300.257 no longer works at all well on Internet Explorer 9.0; .262 seemed to work OK on Firefox 13.1, Chrome 19.0 and Netscape Navigator 9 right after the last-minute fix, but now seems to overload and crash in the usual way.

Summary

I've become completely confused. Maybe things will change once again in a day or two, but a few days after both the Internet Explorer Version (300.257) and the Firefox family Version (300.262) were updated, installed and/or plugged-in, they've started once again to overload, stall, freeze and crash when they encounter even moderately "rich" content (i.e. noisy ads and excessive videos or carousel banners) in My Yahoo! or WSJ.com. Partly due to my inadequate Compaq RAM (512 MB) and processor (Intel Celeron D 360), but this shouldn't happen in any browser.<br><br> MY CURRENT (and changeable) RECOMMENDATION for those with weak systems like mine: May be no problem (even an improvement) with latest Safari, but approach with extreme caution installing with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome or Navigator; it may be worth waiting a week or two for the smoke to clear (at both the Adobe and Firefox ends) and some better fix to arrive. (On the other hand, knowing Adobe, it could take much longer than that.) <br><br> I haven't had this much hassle and grief with an Adobe download since the early days of Adobe Reader 6, 7 & 8 (which, typically for Adobe, came just after Acrobat Reader 5.1 had reached nearly perfect state of the art. If something works, especially one inherited from a good firm like Macromedia, Adobe will find a way to overextend it into chaos.)

E-mail This Review

Thank You, !

Report Offensive Content

If you believe this comment is offensive or violates the CNET's Site Terms of Use, you can report it below (this will not automatically remove the comment). Once reported, our staff will be notified and the comment will be reviewed.